In human memory, i believe that there is no account of a road as great as this, running through deep valleys, high mountains, banks of snow, torrents of water, living rocks, and wild rivers . . in all places it was clean and swept free of refuse, with lodgings, storehouses, sun temples, and posts along the route. oh! can anything similar be claimed for alexander [the great] or any of the [other] powerful kings who ruled the world . .? —pedro cieza de léon, spanish explorer what was significant about the roads described here?